Impressionist Painters Paintings

One of the most popular painting styles of all time is French Impressionism. The name of the style was popularized by Claude Monet when he painted a landscape painting in 1872 called Impression Sunrise. In addition to Monet, several other impressionist painters were active in Paris including Frederic Bazille, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley and other famous French artists. The primary period where these paintings were done was between 1867 and 1878. Photographic technology was coming out, and paintings took on a more realistic feel that also captured the transient feel of light and color. The idea was to give an impression of life, The previous style had an academic feel to it, and focused heavily on mythical figures. Impressionist art celebrated the common people and places of the day, in a bit of a rebellious fashion.

It is common for artistic types to build their own communities and draw influence from one another's work. This was certainly the case with the impressionist artists of the day. Monet, Renoir, Sisley, and Bazille often exhibited their work together. The group made a second home of sorts at Cafe Guerbois in 1869 and into the following year.

Claude Monet
Claude Money was born in 1840 in Paris, and was educated at the Academic Suisse. His first art exhibition was in 1874, and was where his style was referred to as Impressionism. Even as a young child Monet enjoyed the outdoors and quickly took to sketching. His art was supported by his mother, but was a bone of contention with his father who thought business was a better pursuit. Monet served in the military between 1861 and 1862, and was released for medical reasons. He returned to Paris and formed a strong bond with some fellow artists. He received critical acclaim but still struggled financially.

His Impression Sunrise painting was a representation of a familiar harbor draped in a fog. Nature was a popular subject, but Monet became almost as famous for his abrupt brush strokes and bold colors as he was for any of the scenes he chose to paint.

Federic Bazille
Bazille was born in 1841, in Montpellier, France and dropped out of medical school to move to Paris and pursue art. Since Bazille's family was wealthy, he did not struggle financially in the same way the other impressionist artists often did. His studio was in the Batignolles neighborhood of Paris, and since in was larger and nicer than the space of the other artists, Bazille's studio was where they would often gather. His best known painting was Family Reunion, which was painted in 1867 that depicted his extended family against a natural backdrop at their country estate. Overall his art often combined nature scenes with friends and family. In1870, Bazille enlisted to fight in the Franco-Prussian War where he died in the line of duty.

Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Renoir was born in 1841, and was a contrast to Bazille in many ways. He lived a long life of 78 years and came from humble beginning, as his parents were a tailor and a seamstress. His family moved to Paris when he was little more than a toddler, and settled in a home near the Louvre Museum. As a teen, Renoir studied as an apprentice for a porcelain painter who designed dish ware. Renoir's job was to copy the designs. He began copying paintings at the Louvre as well. He moved to working with an actual painter, Charles Gleyre and while he was a student of his he met other artists of his generation.

His paintings were inspired by other artists and literature, as two of his most famous paintings were "La Esmeralda" based on a character from Notre-Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo, and he also showed a painting of fellow painter Alfred Sisley. Female models were also a popular subject matter, and he married his wife who was a seamstress turned model. He too joined the military in 1870, but became ill almost immediately and was never in combat. After the war, he was reunited with Monet and several other artists, and pursued his painting full steam.

Alfred Sisley
Sisley was born in 1839 in Paris, although his parents were actually English, and as a young man he visted London and was inspired by landscape paintings he saw while he was there. As he joined the group of famous french artists, his focus was mostly on landscapes. "Avenue of Chestnut Trees nearLa Celle Saint-Cloud was one of Sisley's first exhibited paintings. Like the other famous Impressionists painters, Sisley was criticized for his "loose" style. Critical acclaim would come after several years. and ultimately, he is noted as one of the purest landscape painters of the day.

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